Nearly 40 years later, Grafton is finally back in a WIAA football championship game

WAUKESHA – These players know about the glory days of Grafton football.

They’ve seen the two state championship trophies as well as the banners hanging in the gym. They’re familiar with Kip Cramer in name, at least, given their home field bears the name of the coach who led the 1981 and ’82 teams to titles.

But those are reminders of Black Hawks history written before their parents and coaches were in high school.

Now this group is carving out a niche in the program’s renaissance. With a 17-6 victory over Stoughton on a crisp night at Waukesha West High School, they became the first Grafton team to earn the right to play for a WIAA football championship since 1984.

“It’s a big-time moment for the community,” Black Hawks head coach Jim Norris said. “It’s a testament to these kids’ hard work, the group’s dedication, the administrators’ commitment, the parents' support and everything. It’s crazy.”

Grafton (11-2) will take on Rice Lake in the Division 3 championship game at 10 a.m. Friday at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. Rice Lake, which has won 12 straight games since falling in its opener, advanced with a 30-15 victory over Green Bay Notre Dame.

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Although Grafton took the lead on the opening play from scrimmage – a 61-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Brady Hilgart to senior wide receiver Jaeden Teigs – the outcome was in doubt for 46 minutes-plus.

Stoughton already had knocked off a No. 2 seed (Greendale), a No. 3 (Waterford) and a No. 1 (Monroe), erasing all traces of a 4-5 regular-season record and No. 7 seeding.

Vikings sophomore quarterback Colyn Kotkowski, on for injured Drew Viney, led a drive that brought Stoughton within 10-6 on Cole Sarbacker’s 8-yard touchdown run with 5:03 remaining. After a Black Hawks punt, the Vikings got the ball back on their 31 with almost two minutes on the clock.

Grafton senior linebacker Dalton Reindl ended the threat by intercepting a third-down pass and taking it 35 yards for a touchdown with 1:31 remaining. Then sophomore safety Nick Schiller picked off another, which allowed the Black Hawks to run out the clock.

“I like the way our defense played. It was awesome,” Norris said. “I love the resilience of our kids and the no-quit mentality. We don’t quit.”

In addition to the late interceptions, Grafton got two big ones in the second quarter, with Tyler Deer picking off Viney in the end zone and Harrison Burke stopping a Stoughton drive at the 20.

“We’ve got to be better offensively though,” Norris continued. “We left a lot on the field. We drove the ball on these guys consistently. They did a good job adjusting, playing their butts off. We’ve just got to finish drives.”

The berth in the title game is another step in Grafton’s return to football prominence. The Black Hawks have made the playoffs for six straight seasons but between 1985 and 2018 had qualified just three other times and went through a 20-year postseason drought.

To get back to Madison, Grafton, the Woodland Conference champion, rolled over Wisconsin Lutheran in the playoff opener and then won tight games against Port Washington – a team that beat the Black Hawks in the regular season – Menasha and then Stoughton.

“We knew the toughest game was Port, the Round 2 game, and after we got through that one we knew if we keep executing and playing good football we have the talent to go this far,” senior defensive back Garrett Bonk said. “We all believed that going into the playoffs.”

With a rare opportunity ahead of them, Norris and his assistants were ready to get back to work Saturday and the players on Sunday. This team is confident and motivated.

“I always go back to thinking about those summer days and even last November when we went back in the weight room after we lost to Port, you’ve just got to remember all that hard work you put in and how long it’s taken to get to this point,” Bonk said. “That definitely fuels you.”

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Grafton beats Stoughton to reach WIAA Division 3 championship game